Izah Azahari
With the 2021 model year in production since September 2020, the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S 4MATIC+ (fuel consumption combined: 12.5 l/100km; CO2 emissions combined: 286g/km) is even faster on the legendary Nordschleife of the Nürburgring.
Thanks to newly tuned elastokinematics and other fine-tuning measures, AMG Development Engineer Demian Schaffert set a new record time, putting the four-door coupé from Affalterbach impressively in first place on the official list of best cars in the ‘luxury class’ category.
The former racing driver beat his own previous lap record set in the fall of 2018 by more than two seconds. The officially measured and notary-certified values are – 7:23,009 min for the 20.6-kilometre-long version (without straight-line measurement for track section T13) and 7:27,800 min for the 20.832-kilometre-long complete track (with straight-line measurement for track section T13). Exactly this variant and this lap time is officially listed by Nürburgring GmbH on their homepage. Mercedes-AMG has thus impressively regained the crown in this class after only three months.
The 470 kW (639hp) Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S 4MATIC+ looked to set a new record in its completely standard form, and it is outfitted particularly well for this: Its equipment includes dynamic driving highlights such as the fully variable AMG Performance 4MATIC+ all-wheel drive, active rear-axle steering, an electronically controlled rear-axle limited-slip differential and the AMG DYNAMICS agility programme.
The Michelin Pilot Sport Cup2 tyres fitted during the record-breaking drive, which every customer can also order as an option, provided the final bit of grip for optimum traction and powerful acceleration out of the total of 73 curves in the Nordschleife. The aero package, which is also optionally available and mounted on the record-breaking vehicle, also increases stability at higher speeds and reduces the cd value.
“Even though I’ve been accompanying our GT 63 through its development for several years now, it’s always impressive to see the wide spread we have been able to achieve with this exclusive vehicle. This is especially true after the recent slight revision. On the one hand, the four-door coupé is comfortable and equipped with many intelligent safety features for everyday driving, and on the other hand it offers this extremely high level of driving dynamics and precision, which we have now been able to demonstrate once again on the demanding Nordschleife,” said Demian Schaffert.
The conditions on the extremely demanding course in the Eifel were anything but optimal, as some sections of the course even had wet spots.
At outside temperatures of seven and asphalt temperatures of 10 degrees Celsius, Schaffert made optimum use of the full potential of the top model in the AMG GT four-door vehicle family. In the RACE driving programme, the AMG RIDE CONTROL+ suspension specifically tightens the damper characteristics, and the steering characteristic curve becomes more direct. In the “Master” position, the AMG DYNAMICS agility programme also utilises all the possibilities of the fully variable all-wheel drive system – as well as the rapid-response control of the electronic limited-slip differential – to ensure the highest possible dynamic response. As an additional safety measure for the driver, the vehicle was equipped with a bucket seat and four-point seat belts.
The record lap was precisely measured by the neutral experts of ‘wige SOLUTIONS’. An independent notary also certified the conditions of the vehicle and the lap time. You can watch the record drive via a video at http://amg4.me/GT_63_ring_lap.